Silence In Western Cherokee Culture Summary

It is often misunderstood that people cannot communicate effectively without the use of spoken language. Silence can be interpreted to mean many things depending the culture. More often than not prolonged silence is attributed to aloofness, rudeness, or defectiveness as we see with the Apache. People who utilize sign language and are incapable of spoken language are also seen differently. In this article review we will look at Culture, and Society: An Introduction to Linguistic Anthropology (Pg. 73-86 Salzmann 2012) and “To Give Up on Words” Silence in Western Apache Culture (Pg. 559-567 Basso 1970).

In the Basso chapter the author explains the communicative struggles that the Apache face. Silence is something that is revered and

is a sign of respect, but among westerners silence is considered rude and standoffish. The author goes on to explain a number of situations where the Apache maintain silence for example, establishing a relationship, a child returning home, and even meeting strangers. While it is difficult to put yourself in the mindset of a different culture this ‘silence’ isn’t meant to offend. In the Apache culture when a couple begins to get to know each other they often don’t say more than a few words to each other, because they don’t know one another. In western culture we would simply talk in order to get over that, but for the Apache time is what is given. When children return home from boarding school parents are silent for days before they speak to their children again. These is because children come back changed and act as if they aren’t Apache anymore, but when the child affirms his place in the Apache culture then the parents will speak. Meeting strangers is also a silent interaction because the Apache associate talkativeness with suspiciousness. The common theme in this silence is the idea of being a stranger. If a person isn’t acting like themselves or they just don’t know them silence is what they are met with this stranger theme.
In the Salzmann article it is indicated that the most common form of language that humans use is spoken. However, there is more to language than being able to speak, nonverbal communication play a big role in communicating information effectively. Non- verbal communication can be broken down into gestures and facial expressions. Many cultures all over the world have developed different means of communication without the use of spoken language, for example some Indians tribes, silbo users, and the deaf. Some Indians tribes were able to use sign language to talk amongst each other even though their language were not related (Salzmann 2012). Silbo users live on the Canary Islands and use a whistled language to communicate through the mountainous terrain, it is more effective than spoken language in this environment because one doesn’t have to yell to be heard. American Sign Language is a common sign language utilized by the deaf in America, there is a dead culture that embodies this as well. American Sign Language has five parameters that aid with the effectiveness of communication and you cannot be a successful signer without them, they are hand shape, palm orientation, location, movement, and facial expressions.
There is no doubt that people often fear and judge things that are different than them, the Apache and the Deaf often face the same kind of cultural challenges in the face of silence. Both the Salzmann and Basso article describe cultures that are different than our own and effectively say that none are wrong simply misunderstood. Apache silence is a sign of respect and the Deaf can be heard through the use of signed languages. Gestures and sign language have been around since the birth of spoken language, maybe even before spoken language. It is important to keep an open mind when communicating with people of different cultures and to realize that people use different way to express themselves. It is also important to clarify that none better than the other, there are no superior languages, which people ethnocentrically seem to apply to their own form of communication.